At noon, after three days of marching, the towering walls of Avalon enters into the heroes’ sights. “Finally, we’re back to civilisation,” Eric comments, a relieved sigh escaping his lips. “Cale, if we want to rank up quickly, it might be better if we avoid these longer expeditions,” Emily says, also a bit weary from their long trip.

Keeping his gaze locked on the walls of Avalon, Cale replies, “I agree. We should get a decent reward and rank progression from this quest, but it wastes too much time. I’ll pick more carefully for the next one. Do you have anything to add, Mia?” From the back, she says while smiling, “I don’t mind which quest we take, I’ll always be there if you need help.”

Cale nods in response and says to himself internally, “I wonder what past trauma Mia suffered on Earth? She never complains and is always willing to help, even if it’s to her own detriment. When we complete a quest, she doesn’t celebrate the fact it’s done, but she seems to relish in the happiness we derive from it. I need to find some time to talk to her. It isn’t healthy to dictate your happiness on the wellbeing of others.”

The group waits in the queue to enter Avalon; it’s length seemingly growing each day. After a half an hour’s wait, they enter after presenting their Guild cards. They follow the main road, heading straight towards the Guild. “You guys go find a table, I’ll hand in the quest,” Cale says, making his way towards Rebecca’s desk.

Arriving in front of her desk, Rebecca is lost in thought. “Hello, I’m here to hand in my quest,” Cale says, trying to get her attention. She almost reels back in shock, by manages to stop herself. “Sorry, I didn’t see you approach. Handing in a quest?” she asks, momentarily not recognising Cale. “Yes, it took a bit longer than expected, but we were successful,” Cale confirms, a proud grin on his face.

Rebecca, properly awake now, suddenly recognises him. She pauses for a brief second and opens a drawer from her desk, revealing a communication’s crystal. “Congratulations, I knew you could do it,” she says, secretly placing her hand on the crystal. The crystal briefly glows, but Cale fails to notice her actions. “Here’s your reward. You’re finally taking your first steps toward the coveted gold rank,” she says, handing him the reward.

“I’m sure the army will put this information to great use,” she adds, a diplomatic smile on her face. “The army? No wonder someone wanted information on a remote mountain range near the borders. Why would they hire adventurers to do it, don’t they have their own scouts?” Cale asks.

“Normally yes, the army would have no need for our services, but they're desperately short on manpower since the King’s offensive began. I can’t tell you the exact details, but I pray it succeeds. If the King fails, then we’re all in for a harsh future. If you want to know more, then you’ll have to pay the assassin’s Guild a small fortune, and I don’t want to get on their bad side,” she replies.

“Thanks for the heads up,” Cale says, returning to his group. Finding himself a seat at their table, Cale says, “Everyone, I fear these peaceful days are rapidly drawing to an end. We’ll follow Emily’s previous suggestion and begin to complete quests in the shortest amount of time possible. The King might not have faith in us, but he’s severely underestimating us. Once we’re ready, we’ll stop the demonic beasts and prove him wrong. The Goddess didn’t summon us in vain.”

Around the table, the heroes each react differently, but none of them refute his words. Lucina is their new home, and if it falls to ruin, they will be condemned along with everyone else. Eric might not be cut out for the adventurer lifestyle, but he knows these truths. Under his breath, Eric says, “First save the world, and then I’ll find my harem.”

On the top floor, a crystal glows in response to Rebecca’s signal. Sitting at his desk, Xephos says, “Sir, they’ve returned.” Staring out of a large window, the Founder responds with a tranquil expression, “I know, I felt his presence the moment he entered this building. Go down and convince him to come up, we need to talk. Remember Xephos, be respectful.”

Xephos nods in response, he stands up from his desk and walks towards the stairs. He arrives on the bottom floor and surveys the main hall. He rarely visits this floor, and few recognise him; those who do, wisely look away, deciding not to make a scene. Xephos’s gaze stops at the bar; he can barely sense Centum’s presence. He walks towards him.

Centum senses Xephos’s gaze, but he doesn’t care, he’s busily writing in the leather book. Xephos arrives next to him, but he barely reacts. Awkwardly standing at the bar, Xephos contemplates his options, “What should I do, he’s ignoring me. No one knows he’s here and I can't dare to be rude. Ah, I have a plan. Hopefully, this works.”

Finding a chair next to Centum, with a serious expression, he signals a barman, “I’ll have a beer.” The barman/assassin instantly recognises Xephos, but tactfully keeps quiet while preparing the drink. Seemingly talking to no one in particular, Xephos says while maintaining his stare on the barman, “I know you can hear me; I apologise for interrupting your work, but this important.”

The barman frown in confusion, but the Guild Leader’s stare keeps him quiet. Centum stops his pen, shifting his gaze towards Xephos next to him, but he remains silent. Xephos continues, “On the top floor, someone wants to talk to you. I’m confident you’ve sensed his presence. We mean no harm; he just wants to talk to you.”

Hearing his words, Centum goes back to writing and says in a monotone voice, “I have no interest in him or his desires.” The barman’s frown deepens, Centum’s disembodied voice throwing him off guard. Xephos sighs in defeat, throwing out his final card, “He travelled numerous worlds just to find you. He knows about you and your secrets.”

Centum’s pen freezes, a bit of his aura seeping out. The aura causes Xephos to shiver. The barman is on the verge of collapsing. Reeling his aura back in, Centum says in a cold tone, “We’ll see how much he knows.” Centum stands up and walks towards the stairs, leaving the barman and Xephos alone.

Xephos stares towards the barman and says with a ruthless tone, “If you value your life or the life of your organisation, forget everything that has just transpired. I trust you know what consequences lie ahead if you don’t.” The barman’s legs shake in response to Xephos gaze as he frantically nods. “Good, I’ll leave this beer here, you seem to need it,” he says, turning around and following Centum upstairs.

On the top floor, the Founder awaits Centum’s arrival, “Finally, after over a hundred years, my search comes to an end. He’s making his way here; I can feel his aura ascending the flights of stairs.” Exiting the stairwell, Centum arrives at the top floor. The whole level is just one large room dedicated as the Guild Leader’s office. Rebecca is standing next to the desk.

Centum removes his obscuring aura, coming to a stop in the middle of the room. The Founder greets him, “We finally meet again. I don’t know why you changed the colour of your robe, but it doesn’t matter.” Centum observes the Founder and comments, “An elf, clearly not native to the planet and completely ill suited to its power system.”

Continuing his observation, Centum begins to recall one of the newer tales in the Library, “An elf that focuses on magic to empower his body. When I read it, I was captivated by the novel concept. Instead of casting spells, the elf would magically empower his body and fight in close quarters. Teacher wrote that tale, but it ended after the elf retired from the heroes’ Guild that he founded.”

While contemplating, Centum keeps a cold stare on the Founder. After twenty seconds of silence, the Founder speaks, his tone growing firmer with each word, “I only managed to see you once, but I never forgot that image. You followed me for tens of years without me realising, but after you slipped up and revealed yourself, I always felt your presence. When you left, you accepted that white Guild card, but this is the first time you’ve used it in a hundred years, I deserve answers.”

Taking his time, Centum replies slowly, “I knew you seemed familiar, and this confirms it. Our discovery was never recorder, strange…” Centum’s response confuses the Founder, but he continues unabated, “You are merely written history, there’s no need for you to know anything else. What you saw and what you know means nothing. The Guild card was never useful until now, simple as that.”

The Founder silently processes the information and asks, “So all you did was record my actions for tens of years, why? For what reason would someone as powerful as you follow around random people for years on end, what’s your goal? You don’t seem to be the same person who followed me around, just how many of you are out there?”

With his face still obscured with the purple hooded robe, Centum replies, “You have no right to know our goals or reasons. No, I’m not the same person who wrote your tale, but I am the same kind. Speculate all you want; I only spoke to you to fulfil a small curiosity. You already know too much, and that’s dangerous. Head my advice and forget everything you know,”

Frustrated by Centum’s lacklustre response, the Founder says, “So I was right, you record the stories of different people. Most likely, you are recording the tale of those summoned heroes, right? How many years has this gone on? How many worlds have you visited? The secrets that you hold are probably innumerable!”

“Enough,” Centum commands, his frightening aura seeping through the whole building, “I’ve already said too much, I won’t reveal myself to you again. If you or anyone related to you interfere with my work, I’ll personally destroy them. Go back to your world and forget all of this. Some things are better left alone.”

Centum’s aura causes every person in the build to freeze. The weaker adventures, including the heroes and everyone below gold rank, instantly fall unconscious. The gold adventurers are frozen in place, barely remaining conscious. On the top floor, Rebecca collapses the floor; near the stairwell, Xephos struggles to breathe.

The Founder, standing closest to the epicentre of Centum’s power, staggers back in response. The crystal on his staff glows brightly, desperately fighting back. In less than a second, it shatters from the tsunami of power washing against it. Gathering the last of his strength, the Founder barely manages to say, “I understand, I won’t disturb you or the heroes! I’ve learned my lesson!”

Happy with the response, Centum withdraws his aura. Xephos collapse to the floor, his energy completely drained. Centum walks toward the stairwell and says one last thing to the Founder, “For your sake, I pray you keep your promises.” The Founder nods back weakly, Centum’s frightening display of power shocking him to his core.

After a couple of minutes, Xephos manages to recover. He walks towards the Founder and asks, “What should we do, sir?” Without needing to think, the Founder replies, “We’ll stop all investigation on him, I still value my life. Go down and make sure everyone’s alright. If they ask what happened. Tell them an ancient artefact went rogue, but we managed to destroy it. I’ll tend to my granddaughter.”

Xephos nods in response, his back still drenched in sweat from Centum’s frightening aura, “I’ll do as you command, sir. I’ll make sure this situation is handled properly.” Watching Xephos walking downstairs, the Founders mind is clouded with concern, “Just what have I provoked?! After this is over, I’ll write official guidelines for anyone unfortunate enough to encounter him in the future.”